For as far back as the history of humanity has been recorded, most men and some women have played games, particularly games which are played outdoors. These games have included equipment such as balls, bats, clubs, and the like. And as everyone knows, the equipment gets dirty.
One game which has become an integral part of society all over the world and particularly in the United States is the game of golf. Imported from Scotland, golf has become one of the largest participant sports and it is also a great spectator sport. As a spectator sport, with touring professional golfers and the many who help and serve them, golf is an elite game where no one ever gets dirty. The professional golfers dress as trend setting fashion leaders, with the most up-to-date clothing. Of course, they are spotlessly clean since the caddies and assistants do everything but swing the club. Clubs and balls are cleaned for them at the clubhouse, by pro-shop attendants or manufacturer's representatives. Everything is clean and nice for the touring professional golfer.
Another class of golfers, perhaps one level down in status, are the exclusive country club golfers who have membership at one or more of the finest golf clubs in the country. The lifestyle at these upscale establishments is comfortable and expensive. Once again, the persons playing golf are treated with deference befitting the prices that are paid for the opportunity or privilege of playing at these courses. Once again, the clubs and balls are cleaned for them at the clubhouse. Everything is nice for the country club golfer.
By far the majority of golfers in the United States are neither touring professionals nor members of exclusive golf clubs. Rather, the average golfer is a lot like the average person in the United States, perhaps a bit more affluent than the bottom of the middle class, but certainly not members of the wealthiest class who can afford to have everything done for them. Yet the ambiance and aura of golfing proclaims that it is a sport or game played with style and good appearances. Finishing touches are important, whether in selecting a color coordinated shirt, slacks and socks, or in having golfing equipment that is bright and shinny, looking as though it is well cared for.
This means that the golfer has to clean the golf clubs and the golf balls, most often for himself or herself, in anticipation of the game to be played at a later date. This means that dirt, mud, grass stains, and the like will have dried on the clubs, clogging the face of the clubs. Golf balls will be stained and dirty, as is inevitable at the end of a round of golf. And while the first hour or so after the game is completed is the most effective time to clean the golf equipment, it is the least opportune time from a social perspective. The golf "culture" has just not developed an attitude that equipment must be cleaned as soon as it is used, such as is done when fishing or hunting. One goes to the "19 th tee" for social discussion and replaying the round in conversation.
One does not take the time to scrub golf balls, wash tees, scrape and clean golf club heads. That comes later, at home or when there is an anticipated game to be prepared for. The alternative is to leave the equipment with an attendant in the pro-shop or club house to have it cleaned, adding to the cost of the game. In either case, persons seeking to relax and enjoy the game of golf have to use either their time or their money to clean their golf equipment, and neither of these opportunities are relaxing. It would be a great advantage to those who play golf to have some way to clean their equipment conveniently and quickly, preferably as soon as the game is completed, and without involving a lot of difficulty or time.
Ultrasonic cleaners have been proposed and, in fact, are used by golf course pro-shops and club house attendants to clean clubs and the like. However, vibration from ultrasonic waves does not remove dirt, grease, and the like. It is the action of soap or other cleaning solvents in the ultrasound bath which accomplishes the cleaning. Ultrasound devices do vibrate and otherwise place stress on golf clubs, and in any event do not offer the less affluent golfer an opportunity to clean his or her clubs. Ultrasound devices are normally placed in the basement or garage area of a home, or they are stored and too much trouble to unpack. The impulse to clean golf equipment is lost before the ultrasound can be found and made operable.
It would be a great advantage to those who play golf to have some way to clean their equipment on site, at the golf course, quickly and conveniently, so that the desired social aspects of the game can be conducted without distraction. What would be ideal, and what is not presently available, is a way to clean golf equipment by quickly placing the equipment in a cleaning environment and going about the social business while the equipment is being safely cleaned.
While no one has directly suggested a formulation for cleaning golf equipment, some of the components of the present invention have been employed in other art. Gergely U.S. Pat. No. 4,417,993 describes a cleaning tablet for tooth prostheses in which a long lasting effervescence is produced using a multiple chemical component system. Dental fixtures and golf equipment are almost totally unrelated, however, and the problems sought to be solved in the dental art are generally not the same as in recreational efforts such as golf.
This same inventor has had several patents which relate to the method of making tablets of this type. Gergely U.S. Pat. No. 3,773,922 describes another method of manufacturing effervescent tablets, this time for dispensing medicine. Both systems use sodium bicarbonate and an acid to generate effervescence, although neither patent suggests that golf equipment could be cleaned by such a concept, since it is of course true that effervescence alone does not clean anything.
The idea of using effervescence generation from sodium bicarbonate and citric acid is not new. Greenblatt, U.S. Pat. No. 2,105,690 teaches that it is old to have an effervescent tablet using potassium bicarbonate and citric acid. Elias U.S. Pat. No. 2,854,377 introduces the use of surface active agents. Keast et al U.S. Pat. No. 3,367,876 discloses sodium tripolyphosphate in large concentrations to increase the rate of dissolution of the general cleaning formulations disclosed therein. Schmitt U.S. Pat. No. 3,639,568 discloses the use of sodium lauryl sulfate in tablets that effervesce. Hill U.S. Pat. No. 3,704,227 discloses various sulfonates and colloidal silica for related compounds. There is no suggestion in any of these patents that golf equipment can be effectively cleaned using these stating materials.
Barth U.S. Pat. No. 4,180,467 describes a composition for denture cleaning with sustained carbon dioxide effervescence and also requires the use of a solid material such as potassium persulfate. Barth discloses a powder that has extended effervescence which is generated by a two phase system where an acid anhydride is employed to extend the effervescence. Other patents which use effervescence in some manner are Krisp et al U.S. Pat. No. 4,217,234, using tetrafluoroethylene materials; Tarral et al U.S. Pat. No. 4,824,664 disclosing a reaction product of sodium bicarbonate and citric acid where the reaction is stopped at a partial completion by application of vacuum; Duvall U.S. Pat. No. 4,942,039 describing a low sodium antacid with aspirin or the like included; Young U.S. Pat. No. 5,055,305 also using a two component systems to provide effervescence under acidic and alkaline conditions to prolong the reaction; and finally, Gioffre et al U.S. Pat. No. 4,818,518 disclosing an alternative source of carbon dioxide.
There is no teaching in the prior art of the use of a compressed formulation having a delaying action for the effervescence due to the compression, to thereby allow the detergent to work and prevent the user from stopping the cleaning. This is not shown or suggested in the prior art.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a method for cleaning and restoring golf equipment as broadly defined herein to a clean, visually appealing condition with as little effort on behalf of the owner as possible.
Another object of this invention is to provide a formulation which is usable all the golf course immediately after the golf game, when the equipment is most easily cleaned, and which does not require significant investment to implement complete cleaning and restoring of the equipment.
Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a formulation which guides the user to complete the cleaning process before removing the golf equipment from the process.
Other objects will appear hereinafter.